


A Quiet Afternoon

by Nicxan



Category: Doctor Who (2005), Metroid Series
Genre: F/M, Me? writing an obscure OTP that literally no one but me ships? It's more likely than you think, Not Beta Read
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 18:17:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20178634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nicxan/pseuds/Nicxan
Summary: The Doctor never really gave her a chance to think about it when offering to travel with him. Thankfully, though, he seemed to just want to help her relax and give them the chance to catch up.This time.





	A Quiet Afternoon

**Author's Note:**

> Writer's Month day 9! Time Travel!  
Okay, maybe I need to explain this one - I had a friend, who I'm sadly not in touch with anymore, and we roleplayed this on Gaia. This ship worked well, and I ship it to this day. It was .......... good. I haven't gotten to write it in a long, LONG time, so thanks for the excuse, Writer's Month!

Samus had to admit that she had never seen the Earth quite like this before.   
  
It was much more … how could she describe it? Quaint. Quaint was the word for it. She could sit here in this little teahouse, watch the clouds go by, hear everyone chattering among themselves. The air was clearer in this little ... well, the Doctor insisted it was a city, but she couldn’t help but think of it as a village. It was so damned _small_ compared to what she was used to.  
  
She had finally seen a horse for the first time. All she had seen were pictures, never the real thing. It was embarrassing to admit that she stared, starry-eyed like a child, but she had. Actually seeing a carriage, a proper one, only made her appreciate how fast her ship was. She’d never make it here; it was too slow for her.  
  
Even so, while it was a lot to take in, and while it was just a little _too_ quiet, she found herself relaxed. And that was something the Doctor had noticed a bit ago, if she read the cheeky grin on his face correctly. Samus still couldn’t help but smile when she looked over at him across the table.   
  
The Doctor looked dapper in his fancy suit – he was probably excited to wear it because he _knew_ he looked that good in it. While the top hat was a bit much, he had insisted on it. It didn’t suit his usual style, sure, but it helped him blend in. _That_ was the important part.   
  
Well, no. The actual important part was that she finally got to see him again. It had been too long since they had traveled together. Years, in fact. To have the chance to do it again was something wonderful, and she wasn’t going to take it for granted.  
  
“I didn’t expect to say this after you made me wear a dress, but ... thanks. This is nice,” she said softly.  
  
“Aw, of course,” the Doctor replied. “You said you were burned out, yeah? Can’t hurt to take you away for a second over there for an afternoon over here in Victorian times. Maybe two afternoons over here, if you _really_ feel like it.”  
  
“… I never said I was burned out.” Samus raised an eyebrow, then leaned forward, resting an elbow on the table. “What gave you that idea? You didn’t even give me a real chance to think about it – just told me to come with you. And I wasn’t going to turn that down.”  
  
“Well, all right, your friend might have ratted you out a bit, then.” The Doctor winked. He left her hanging for just a moment, just long enough to take another sip of his tea. “Said you were out of sorts after wiping out the, er, what was it called ...”   
  
“X Parasite?”   
  
“That’s the one!” The Doctor nodded. “Right, that little bugger. Quite deadly, from what you’ve told me. But you’ve taken care of it?”  
  
“I think so.” Samus had made that clear back in her time, but she couldn’t help but worry – what if one SA-X managed to escape? What if they all hadn’t been wiped out by the blast on SR-388? She tried to push the thought from her mind, tried to force herself to enjoy this quiet moment with her Doctor.  
  
“So. Which friend? I don’t have many of them nowadays.”  
  
“Come on, don’t tell me you don’t _remember_ him. You wouldn’t forget someone who thinks you’re royalty, would you?” The Doctor sounded so pleased with himself, like he had just made the most clever remarks in the universe.   
  
“Oh. Anthony. I’m not surprised, then.” Samus chuckled and set down her teacup. While ginger tea was lovely, it wasn’t nearly as lovely cold. The cheese that had been set in front of her looked much more appealing, and it bought her a little time to mask her exhaustion.   
  
The Doctor had noticed, though – and he didn’t look very impressed. His infectious grin faded, and he studied her with that intensity that she hated and loved at the same time.   
  
“What is it?”  
  
“What’s what?” Samus replied, praying that playing dumb would be enough. It wouldn’t be, and she knew it, but she had to try.   
  
“Come on, you know you can tell me,” the Doctor pressed. While it sounded lighthearted enough on the surface, she could hear the concern underneath that. It was odd, how even after years of being apart, she hadn’t forgotten those little intricacies of his.   
  
“I’m fine.”   
  
The two sat in silence, staring at each other, each trying to look through the others’ facade – though the Doctor was having much more success than Samus was.  
  
“Odd definition of fine you have, there,” he countered softly. “Very odd.”  
  
“If I remember right, you have a similar one.” The Doctor laughed humorlessly, and Samus was surprised at how obviously fake it was.   
  
“… Are _you_ all right?” she asked, reaching out to touch his hand gently. He didn’t pull it back. Her gloved hand laced with his properly, and she held onto it tightly. The Doctor had just as firm of a grip, and even if she wanted to pull away, it would be more trouble than it was worth. Her eyes met his, and she saw through his constant facade. Just for a moment.   
  
He looked lost. Maybe a little confused. Absolutely crestfallen. And she couldn’t exactly blame him.  
  
“… Samus,” the Doctor whispered. “You know we can’t do this anymore.” The weight in his words said plenty. Yet, he didn’t move his hand at all.  
  
“I know.” She pushed back thoughts of them embracing out of her mind, the last moments they shared before she had to leave – “… But let’s pretend for today. Victorians seem to be pretty uptight about this sort of thing. We need to look proper, right?” Samus forced a smile, just as the Doctor forced himself to chuckle.   
  
“Can’t really call it pretending, can we?” he asked as he ran his thumb along her knuckles. It was such a soft and gentle gesture, and he always managed to do it when she wasn’t expecting it. This time was no exception.  
  
“No, not really.” Samus grew quiet, then averted her gaze to the table. “Just two more days, then?”   
  
“Two more days.”   
  
The Doctor nodded, then reluctantly pulled his hand away from Samus’. He finished the last of his tea, which prompted Samus to do the same, and then rose to his feet.   
  
“Well now, my lovely … er … wife, why don’t we take an afternoon stroll? The weather’s absolutely perfect for it.” He offered his arm, which Samus took without hesitation.   
  
“Sure. I’d love to.”


End file.
